In a heated Saturday clash between the Philadelphia Phillies and Washington Nationals, a rare dispute over MLB Rule 3.07 stole the spotlight. The rule bans pitchers from using white, gray, or distracting gloves—those lighter than Pantone 14—to ensure batters can clearly track the pitcher’s hand and release point. Phillies’ $7.5M reliever Matt Strahm found himself accused of violating this obscure regulation.

During the eighth inning of the game, Strahm walked towards the dugout and “had to remove his pencil glove that was signed by all the players on the Little League World Series team from Pennsylvania because the Nationals complained about it,” via Jomboy Media reported.

Matt Strahm was told to take off his glove because it had white on it, which goes against MLB rules. But later, it came out that Strahm was wearing the glove to honor the Pennsylvania Little League Challenger Division. For the unversed, that’s a program for kids with physical and intellectual disabilities. And the glove had been signed by those players.

Now, fans are debating whether the Nationals were just doing their job by pointing it out or if they went a little too far by complaining.

The Nationals are getting called out over the glove issue

“Nationals being extra petty,” one fan commented. Well, some fans think the Nationals have done something even more than being petty. “Bush League move.” One user commented, “Imagine being mad at a glove signed by KIDS. Weak behavior.“

“For those who are claiming it’s illegal to use, it’s a national players week that means you can have any design you want on ur glove, to complain over a glove design is pretty pathetic,” said a fan. As a matter of fact, during MLB’s “Players Weekend,” running from August 15 to August 17, players enjoy greater flexibility to customize their gear, including glove designs. This allows for personal flair with bold colors, unique patterns, or team emblems, transforming the equipment into cherished highlights of the festive occasion. But as they say, rules are rules.

Well, not everyone is ridiculing the Nationals. “The dude is playing with an illegal glove. Pretty simple.”

In April this year, the All-Star reliever told Matt Gelb of The Athletic about a unique white and brown glove featuring the Declaration of Independence, inspired by the 2004 film where the National Treasure’s Nicolas Cage’s character pilfers the document. However, this glove also features white text, which makes it unusable during games.

“I mean, from this angle, it looks like it’d be a nightmare trying to see the ball come out as a hitter,” said another fan.

Eventually, the game went in the Nationals’ favor, winning it 2-0. However, the game served as a good reminder about the minute details in MLB. Not adhering to them could cause accusations of being illegal. Eeven if unintentional.